Wednesday, April 4, 2012

Research & Marbles

Guess what we finished today? Oh yes, the MAP test. We're done! HOORAY! You better believe I gave out a big 'ol WAHOOOOOOOOOO when I collected all of the test booklets.

Anywho, guess what is next for us in Science? Just a little research project (that I happen to be dreaming about). I've been planning this project for almost a month now, and I'm so stinkin' excited to get started that I just can't stand it!

Really, I'm not lying. I had a dream about researching.

Ugh, I've lost my marbles.

Just kidding! They're in a jar in my basement back home.

Really, I'm not lying about that either. Okay, okay I've lost track.

Back to business...

It's taken over my classroom, too. See what I mean?

Let me explain.

My students will be completing a research project about a subject/topic that they want to research in science. I'm just providing categories to choose from. Those categories happen to be the "big ideas" studied in 5th grade: Universe, Weather, Force and Motion, Animals, and Scientific Inquiry. On the project outline, I provided a few "stems" to get their brains chugging along.

Each student is required to collect facts, use a graphic organizer to organize their fact-a-moondos, and draft an essay. Then! Here comes the fun part... each student can choose how they present and publish their information. Maybe one student will make a powerpoint, maybe one student will be making a poster. The possibilites are endless! Well, not really.

I converted one of my bulletin boards into a timeline for our research project. I wrote each student's name on a card and we tacked them up today. Not only will this board help me keep everyone organized, but students will be able to chart their own progress throughout the research project. You can download the PDF for our project below.

Now, be warned - I haven't completed this project yet. In fact, we haven't even started. I may be bald at the end of April after yanking out my hair throughout this project. But, it's for the kids -right?